Godzilla vs. Kong actress Kaylee Hottle has died aged 18.
News of the screen star’s passing was announced by her father Joshua, who took to Facebook to share a video statement explaining the tragic news.
He wrote alongside it: “I am taking a flight that I would never like to take.”
Joshua used American Sign Language (ASL) in the statement, due to the fact that Hottle - who played orphan Jia in the 2001 monster movie and its 2024 sequel Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire - was deaf.
Kaylee died in a car crash in Maryland, with a press release from the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office confirming it was a single vehicle collision which happened at around 2.52am on Tuesday (21.07.26).
The release stated: “The preliminary investigation revealed that a 1995 Honda Accord, operated by a 19-year-old Frederick man, traveled off the right side of the two-lane roadway and struck a culvert.
“Excessive speed is believed to be a contributing factor in the collision.”
Following the tragic news, tributes began pouring in to the teenage actress.
In a statement on Instagram, the Texas School for the Deaf, where Kaylee had studied, wrote: “Our hearts are with Kaylee's family, friends, classmates, and everyone who knew and loved her during this incredibly difficult time.”
Kaylee was from a multi-generational deaf family, and her Kong character also used sign language to communicate with the giant ape.
She starred alongside Rebecca Hall and Alexander Skarsgård in the movies, with the actor telling Junkee that they both learned ASL in order to communicate with Kaylee away from filming.
Speaking to Junkee in 2021, Alexander said: “It’s her first movie. It’s fascinating how comfortable she is in front of the camera and how quickly she takes notes from the director Adam (Wingard).
“He’ll explain something and she’ll be like ‘got it, got it’ then she’ll just do it and everyone’s like ‘the f--k … how did she?’ She’s so professional and just incredibly … there’s so much going on on her face, her expression and the subtleties of that is fascinating to watch.”
Kaylee earned a nomination for the Best Younger Performer in a Film Saturn Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy Horror Films in 2025 for Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire.
As well as her role in the Godzilla films, Kaylee starred in a 2021 episode of the Magnum P.I. reboot.
